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Top Prom Dress Trends for 2014

Prom 2014 is coming up fast, and with fashion that is always changing, it's easy to not quite know where to begin your shopping spree for the perfect dress. If you're looking to be on trend this prom season, it's all about feminine details and color.

Nudes and Mint: Mint green has been a popular choice of color for clothing and jewelry for a while, but now it is making it's way to prom dresses. Nude, pink and mint are very compatible, so look forward to seeing these colors together. It seems that bright colors have almost always been popular at prom, and while they definitely will appear this season, mint and various nudes are beautiful and feminine on a gown.

Lace: While extremely popular in the bridal market, lace is finally making its way to prom. Lace is the ultimate feminine detail and will mainly show itself in overlays and in the neckline of dresses. This feature will most likely accompany the nude theme.

Overlays: Wearing a short dress to prom has increased in popularity in recent years, but what if you're not so sure you want to take the plunge? Well, this year those short hemlines may be extended with a sheer overlay, giving you the best of both worlds. This trend also really highlights long legs, which is always a plus.

Hi-Lo Dresses: This style also combines both lengths since these dresses are above the knee in the front and gradually go long as you move to the back. Hi-lo is extremely popular in casual clothing as well and does a good job of breaking out of the traditional mold when it comes to formal wear. And if you are a fan of all of the trends, you can most likely find a hi-lo dress that combines them, with lace detail at the top and in a nude or mint color.

Most of you have been shopping for your dress, if you haven't already purchased your dress, but if not, keep these trends in mind.

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April Fools for Kids

If your kids are old enough to enjoy a good, clean prank, have some fun this year! The beginning of April is right around the corner and you have a chance to get lots of laughs out of your children by playing some fun tricks on them. Here are a few ideas.

Breakfast Surprise: Fix your kids breakfast foods that you can transform into a different color with food coloring. Make their scrambled eggs green, turn their milk blue, put red food coloring in their oatmeal, etc. They'll get a nice surprise when they wake up!

Shoes Everywhere: This will surely get a lot of giggles. Gather up a bunch of your family members' shoes and place them all around the house in odd places. You can tape some to the wall, put flowers in one like a vase, put their toothbrushes in a shoe, whatever creative ideas you can come up with to make them laugh all around the house!

Googly Eyes: This will make everyone laugh, not just your kids. Grab a cheap bag of googly eyes from the store and stick them in funny places. The face of the baby on a box of diapers, on the T.V., on the lamp shades, on their favorite DVD case, on the bottom of their drinking cup, on their school books. Basically you can replace the eyes of anything around your house. This one might get laughs for days until they are all found!

Toilet Paper Notes: If you have some time on your hands, switch out the kids' toilet paper roll with one that you have written goofy (or sweet!) notes all over. Each time they roll some out they will get a surprise!

Fake Critters: This is a classic, but it's always funny! Put plastic bugs all around the house in places where you know they will see them. You may want to only do this with your kids who aren't really scared of bugs so it won't upset them!

April 1st is a good opportunity to tap into your creativity and sense of humor for an entire day of laughs. And it will also give your kids an opportunity to use theirs!

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Unique Easter Egg Decorating Ideas

Easter is the perfect time to use your family time and have something planned for the kids, as well as the adults to enjoy. Kids love Easter because there are so many activities that can be incorporated into it. Probably the most popular activity is decorating Easter eggs. Here are a few ways to spice up your egg decorating.

Decorate With Stickers – Keeping track of all those eggs can be challenging, which is why this step is crafty and extra helpful. Once the eggs have completely dried, let the children personalize their eggs with stickers. Let them purchase their own stickers so they can really get creative with them.

Marbleize the Eggs – The best part about water and oil not mixing is the amazing marbleized eggs you can create. Plain ones are pretty, but eggs covered in swirly shades of color add a unique flair.  Add vegetable oil to this week's shopping list and follow these simple steps.

Directions

  • Start with dry, colored eggs.
  • Add 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil to one of the cups filled with a dark colored dye. Run a fork through the mixture.
  • Dip egg into cup and re-dye it in the oil mixture, turning the egg often with a spoon.
  • Carefully remove the egg. Set it aside to dry on a paper towel.

Paint-Splattered Easter Eggs – For a modern take on Easter egg decorating, you'll have to let your kids get a little messy. Once their dyed eggs have dried, dip a paintbrush in black paint. Hold the brush over the center of the egg and tap the handle to splatter the paint. Play around with the technique — the harder you tap the brush, the bigger your splatter marks.

Tie-Dyed Easter Eggs – Place several layers of paper towels onto a sheet of plastic wrap. Mix water with a bit of white vinegar into a spray bottle and generously spray the entire paper towel. Then, place several drops of food coloring all over the paper towel. Make sure to only use 2 or 3 different colors so it will turn out more vibrant. Place your hard-boiled egg in the middle and wrap it up pretty tight. Spray again with the water and vinegar mixture until the paper towel is soaked, squeezing out any excess. Wrap it in plastic wrap and secure it at the top. Let it set for about an hour and you'll have a pretty cool creation!

For a fun Easter activity for all, dye Easter eggs! However, you don't have to stick with just plain colors, mix it up with these fun decorating ideas to make your eggs stand out! This doesn't have to be just for you and your kiddos, you can also turn it into a fun party!

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St. Patrick's Day: Go Green!

St. Patrick's Day: The Feast of Saint Patrick

Celebrated on the 17th of March, St. Patrick's Day commemorates Saint Patrick and the arrival of Christianity in Ireland. It also is a celebration of Irish culture in general. There are parades and festivals, and people celebrating usually wear green and decorate with shamrocks. Whether you traditionally celebrate St. Patrick's Day or not, you can still make the day all about the color green. Here are some ways to play up the color green on March 17th!

Green Breakfast!

Possibly the best way to start off the day is by having a spread of green food for everyone to enjoy when they wake up. It doesn't have to be much; make some yummy pancakes with green food coloring, blend up some "green" smoothies with spinach and various fruit, or get a little creative with green eggs and ham. Adults and kids alike love a little variety at breakfast, and this gives you a chance to introduce your kids to the holiday if they aren't familiar with it.

Green Style

This one is simple. Let your kids pick out their own green outfit for the day! If you don't quite trust that their choices (however innocent they may be) will be school-appropriate, pick out different articles for them to choose from and put together into a complete outfit. Show them how you've put together your own green outfit and encourage their individual sense of style.

A Green Craft
When your kids get home from school that day get a small craft together for them to enjoy. Their school may have already incorporated some St. Patrick's celebration into their day, so don't feel like you need to go all out. Just make a memory with them that you can keep on file. Here's an example:

  • Coffee Clovers – Grab a basic coffee filter and trace a shamrock for you or your little one to cut.  Pour some liquid watercolor paint into a cup or bowl and give your child a water dropper. For your older children, challenge them to control their squeezes by dropping one drop of paint at a time onto the shamrock. The result will be a green clover as the coffee filter absorbs the paint!

So, what are your plans for this St. Patrick's Day? Hopefully it involves all things green!

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Grab Your Beads and Get Ready for Mardi Gras!

Mardi Gras is celebrated all around the world on the day before Ash Wednesday. It's a way to indulge before the start of Lent. So this is a great holiday to celebrate since you can have all kinds of delicious food and fun games! It's celebrated on a large scale in New Orleans with parades and parties, but with a little research on the holiday, you can celebrate right in your own home!

Decoration and Setting: Purple, green, and gold are the official colors of the holiday. Bright and colorful is the key. Beads draped around the room, tinsel, balloons, streamers, etc. You can go all out or not, as long as whatever you use is vibrant and within the color scheme! If you have kids and want to let them help out, have them string the beads around the furniture and decide where to place streamers (with supervision, of course.)

Mardi Gras Trivia: If you're like me, you may not know a whole lot about Mardi Gras without some Google searching. Playing a trivia game about the holiday will give everyone some insight into what Mardi Gras is actually about and how it came to be. It may be more or less a guessing game, but that's okay! It will be entertainment just testing everyone's guessing skills! You can get started with questions like: When was the first documented Mardi Gras parade in New Orleans? (Answer: 1837) What does Mardi Gras translate to in English? (Answer: Fat Tuesday) What are the official colors of Mardi Gras, and what do they stand for? (Answer: Purple for justice, green for faith, and gold for power).

Masks: You can't have a Mardi Gras party without masks. Masks of all kinds are a welcomed trend of Mardi Gras. To make it more interesting, you can make masks at your party. Or have a contest to see whose mask is most popular. If kids are involved, they can have a mask decorating station set up just for them.

Food: Probably the most important aspect of the night! You will want to serve real hearty food like chicken and sausage gumbo, red beans and rice, shrimp, etc. For dessert, try bread pudding, King Cake (a ring-shaped pastry), or Beignets. Just be sure to go with New Orleans inspired food and you'll be sure to complete the tone of your Mardi Gras festivities.

When planning your Mardi Gras party, be sure to draw inspiration from the heart and sole of Mardi Gras, New Orleans. Your party will truly be full of life, color and good times!

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Host A Doughnut Tasting Brunch

Sometimes it's tough to figure out new ways to spice up a girl's get together. However, we've come up with something that we think will add a twist to the normal get together. Most everyone loves donuts, so why not collect a variety and turn it into a relaxing Saturday brunch.

What are some tips on hosting a doughnut tasting brunch? We have a few that will ensure your brunch a success.

Where to get doughnuts? – You can either make doughnuts or pick them up at your local bakery. If you decide to try your hand at making your own doughnuts, it might be fun to get everyone involved. However, if that's just a little too much than you'd like to do, order the best from each bakery for your party. If you can't swing paying for all of the doughnuts and pastries yourself, you can split it up between your friends and each visit one bakery. That way, you all feel like you've contributed to the menu and you can each tell about what you learned from the bakeries. This makes for good brunch conversation starters.

Get fancy with it – The term "brunch" just sounds fancy, so why not go a little bit further than you might for just a regular get together? Your definition of fancy might be totally different than someone else's, and that's just fine. For me, it just means pulling out some of the prettier stuff in my kitchen. Glass vases, jars, and my vintage saucers that I found at a flea market. Fancy doesn't have to mean expensive. This is a great time to get creative with the word "fancy" and really make whatever room the brunch will take place in pretty and feminine.

What drinks to serve – Complementing a doughnut or pastry can be tricky since you don't want anything too sweet or heavy. Milk is always a good drink to chase down a yummy doughnut. You can also go out-of-the-box a little bit and have things like water with fresh lemon or lime slices, hot coffee, or iced coffee. Don't worry too much about the drinks since you want the food to be the main focus.

Find a favorite – Throughout the brunch have everyone search for their favorite dougnutt or pastry. Keep track of the favorites and see which ones reigned supreme and which ones didn't. This way you can find out another little detail about your friends and what they like. Have little pieces of paper for each person to fill out their favorite and least favorite and throw into the middle of the table for discussion.

When wanting to do a change up to your normal girl's get together routine, go with a doughnut tasting brunch! It's something unique, but all the girls will love it.

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Top Wedding Bouquet Trends for 2014

There are so many options when it comes to planning your wedding bouquet that it can all seem a little overwhelming. But, by sitting down and thinking about what you like before filling your head with tons of options, you'll be able to tackle the decision much easier! Here are a few ideas on trend for 2014 for making sure you fall in love with your bouquet.

Shabby Chic – This is for the ultimate romantics. Very delicate, feminine flowers like calla lillies are charming and will make you feel like the queen of the day. Color choice is important since you don't want any overwhelming colors if you're going along with this theme. Creams, light pinks, and light greens would work well.

Bling – Anything from pearls to crystals to rhinestones, are classy ways to give a bouquet some flair and elegance. It can be over-the-top or just a hint of sparkle, whichever goes with your theme and your personality.  One rule to go by: if your dress has a lot of bling make sure your bouquet is toned down at least a little bit. The bouquet is important, but the dress should stand out more.

Be Open to Variety – Rather than getting fixated on one type of flower, incorporating a variety of different ones displays your personality and doesn't limit you to the one perfect choice of flower. It's easy to think that you've got to have just the right flower type for your bouquet, but let go a little bit and use many of your favorites together. You'll be glad you did. When it comes to flower choice, find something with significance to help you make the decision like your or your fiance's birth month flower, or blooms from the first set of flowers your fiance gave you.

Get Sentimental – Another decision you'll be happy with is the decision to pack your big day with objects and memories close to your heart. With your bouquet, you have the ability to add things into it that mean a lot to you and will comfort you as you walk down the aisle. Whether the stems are wrapped with a special material from your grandmother or a locket with a picture of someone you love inside, you will like being able to rekindle those memories each time you tell someone your bouquet story.

Any wedding bouquet trends you see that will fit into your wedding? There are many options and all are simply breathtaking.

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Valentine's Day Crafts for Kids

It seems like for each holiday there is an overload on the internet and in magazines of possible crafts you can do with your kids to celebrate. While they are all fantastic, and certainly creative, sometimes we just long for the simple crafts we used to do before all of these portals were used so much. Here are a few tried-and-true crafts you can do this Valentine's season with your kids on a quiet day at home, or as a part of a party thrown for all of their friends.

Construction Paper Garland

Valentine Garland
This is probably the easiest Valentine's Day craft you can do with your kids, and it also allows them to contribute to some decoration for their room or wherever else around the house! Pick out a couple favorite colors that represent the season, like pink and white. If you have a boy that also wants to get involved you can use just red paper and create a shape besides a heart, like a circle or a star, for their garland. It may not have the same Valentine's Day effect as a heart, but it doesn't matter. At least it lets them be a part of the project too!

Start by cutting a bunch of one-inch, (or half-inch depending on how thick you want it to be), strips out of the paper. The amount of strips you cut will depend on how long you want your garland to be. Next, fold each piece in half, hamburger style. That will create the pointy part of the heart. Then, simply take a strip and form it into a heart, stapling where the two curved parts meet. Just keep repeating until you have as many as you need, linking them together before you staple each heart. This makes for such a cute decoration!

Cards for Friends and Family

Just like we send out Christmas cards during the Christmas holiday season, let your kids create some masterpieces to send to close friends and family to tell them "Happy Valentine's Day." It isn't extremely common to receive cards in the mail for this holiday, and those close to you and your kids will love the homemade surprise.

Heart Milk Cubes

This is a bit different, but really easy and fun to add to your kids' milk glasses or your cup of coffee. Combine milk and a few drops of red food coloring together into a small bowl. Fill a heart-shaped ice cube tray and freeze overnight. Your kids will love to watch their milk turn pink as the cube melts.

Valentine Cookies

These can go any way you want. You can either make your favorite cookie, roll out the dough, and use a heart-shaped cookie cutter, or you can add food coloring to the recipe to make them festive. Or you can do both! Let your kids be in charge of dropping and stirring in the food coloring so they can watch their cookies magically change before their eyes. Then once the dough is done they can decorate them however they like before cooking them: sprinkles, red and pink M&Ms, etc. After they're done baking they can add toppings like various colors of icing. There are so many options, and you can set it all up on your bar or kitchen table so they can really get into it. This is a good activity because you can eat your craft at the end or put some together to hand out to neighbors.

This Valentine's Day, why not plan some fun craft ideas for your kids? There are tons of great activities that you and your kids will both enjoy. Even plan a get together with all your child's friends and host a Valentine's Day craft party, it'll definitely be great fun!

Photo via WIP Blog

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Winter Party Themes for Your Kids

Moms of winter babies, we feel your birthday party pain. Kids with summer birthdays get outdoor extravaganzas to celebrate their days, but cold weather calls for some more creative party planning. Here are a few ideas to celebrate your little one's special day. Some embrace the holiday spirit and some are filled with their own inside entertainment.

Winter Wonderland
Winter Wonderland – This is a good idea for kids who love magical settings. Use a color scheme of whites, silver, and pale pink to create a frosty wonderland. For boys, you can use icy blue and soft brown tones along with the white. Decorating is a cinch. So, for an easy and really affordable addition to your decorating, bring in some small branches from your yard, stick them in clear vases, and you've got a unique centerpiece for your child's cake table or your mantle. You can also add streamers, balloons, confetti and mesh to create a magical wonderland. You will also find fun games and activities for children to do as well.

All Things Glitter – The focus of this theme is the crafts the kids can do while they are celebrating. Cutting out snowflakes covered in glitter, spraying various colors of glitter on Styrofoam shaped like trees, cupcakes with glitter frosting, pine cones covered in gold glitter and made into an ornament (if the party is before Christmas), etc. A handmade craft from your child is the perfect party favor, and it looks even better covered in glitter!

Arctic Animals – This one is pretty self-explanatory. Get into a conversation with your child and find out their favorite winter animals and use it as a jumping off point for their party. There's something about animal characters that put a smile on almost any child's face. Penguins and polar bears are good choices for a kids party. Or boys may like having the arctic fox as a unique theme for their big day. You can even suggest that guests who want to bring gifts can keep with the animal theme.

Snowmen Cupcakes
Snowman Party- This one is pretty classic, but there are so many crafts and food options for a party with this theme. If you don't include snowmen into your winter wonderland theme, make it a theme all its own. Pinterest is full of tutorials for snowman cookies, cookie dough balls, or candy bars. Take time before the party  to draw snowmen on clear plastic cups with black and orange sharpies and fill them with popcorn for the kids to snack on during the party.

For take-home party favors, you can paint a snowman on pretty much anything. You can have the kids bring home personalized coffee mugs for their parents with a snowman face painted on them. This party will be a hit with all ages.

If you take the time to research a little bit, you can find plenty of ideas to make a Winter party a big hit. The kids won't even miss the swimming pool with an indoor wonderland that celebrates this chilly season.

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Celebrating New Year's Eve with Your Kids

Once your kids wave goodbye to Christmas it can leave them (and you!) in a little bit of funk. It's always sad to see Christmas go, but there is always New Year's Eve! The midnight hour may not be very kid-friendly, but you can still give them a reason to look forward to the holiday. Prepare the hot chocolate, crank up the holiday tunes, and give these ideas a try.

Make a Time Capsule – This is a really neat idea if you are even the slightest bit sentimental. You can sit down with your kids and fill out a fun survey with questions such as: What is your favorite food right now? Who is your best friend? What is your favorite thing you did this year? Put a current picture of your children along with their surveys in a box and pull it out every year. Answer the same questions each year. Years down the road it will be fun to see how much has changed, and to reflect on various stages of your kids' lives.

Brainstorm – Going along with getting together as a family, the simplest thing you can do is talk about the year that is fast approaching. Make some of your kids' favorite snacks and hang out together with a big poster board to write any and every thing you want to do in the next year. This can range from small things like seeing a certain movie, to bigger dreams like a hopeful vacation. Since you are all having to leave Christmas behind, this can give you some much-needed targets to look forward to.

Join with Friends – Remember all those friends that you used to spend New Year's Eve with before you had kids? If you are all in the same parenting boat there's no reason why you still can't get together to celebrate the new year! If you're up for company (and a little chaos!), invite them all over with their kids and have a spontaneous New Year's Eve celebration. Tell your friends to bring pajamas for the kids and set up movies, popcorn, and sleeping bags for the little ones so that everyone can stay as late as possible.

If your kids are young and you aren't really sure how to involve them in the thrill of New Year's, it doesn't have to be complicated. Mark the holiday by spending time together, and you'll hopefully make it a little bit easier for them to move on from Christmas.

7 Tips: Hosting for the Holidays

The holiday season is all about joy, togetherness, and celebration. But let’s be honest—it can also be a little stressful, especially if you’re the one hosting. Whether you’re planning an intimate dinner with family or a lively party with friends, these tips will make hosting for the holidays a breeze!

Hosting 101: Tips for a Seamless Event

Hosting an event can be a rewarding experience, but it requires detailed planning and execution. Whether you're organizing a party, shower, holiday dinner, or just a casual get-together, it's important to ensure everything goes according to plan so that your guests have a great time, and *bonus* you come across as a hosting pro! To make this easier, we've outlined some tips to help you host your next event with confidence.

Winter Wedding Tips

Breaking news… winter weddings are our latest love affair! The days are shorter and the nights are colder, but winter weddings are full of romance and have a uniquely magical essence.

2024 Bid Day Themes

In recent years, these trendy Bid Day themes have made waves on campuses nationwide, combining nostalgia, elegance, and fun into celebrations that are unforgettable and awe-inspiring! This year is no exception, and it's safe to say that we've got a few rush crushes of our own. We've compiled a list of some of our favorite 2024 Bid Day themes that you can take inspo from for your next event.